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Land compensation stalls 540-m bridge across Yamuna at Palwal

Started 4 years ago, project to link Uttar Pradesh | CM’s approval sought for higher relief
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The state has to build two pillars to complete the bridge at Palwal. Tribune photo
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The dispute over the acquisition of land for the construction of two pillars for the ongoing project of a bridge over the Yamuna, near Hasanpur village of the district, has reached the Chief Minister's Office. The district authorities have submitted the proposal of enhancing the circle rate for the release of compensation for the land to be acquired.

The project, which aims to provide direct connectivity to UP, has been hanging fire for the past over four years, though 90 per cent of the pillars have been constructed on the UP side.

The issue is significant as it is the pet project of Harinder Singh, the ruling party's MLA from the Hodal Assembly segment. With the government completing 100 days in power after the last Assembly poll, the delay in the resolution of the dispute has held up the matter, despite the fact that the MLA has been pushing for it.

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The project is stuck because of the lack of consensus over the compensation as the landowners have been claiming that the circle rates had been lowered in comparison to the market rates, and that they could not part with their land at the rate offered by the authorities. Sources said several meetings have been held in the past six months, but the matter is not likely to be resolved until the compensation was hiked to a level acceptable to the farmers.

It is reported that while the authorities concerned have agreed to pay three times the prevailing circle rate of Rs 32 lakh per acre, the owners have demanded compensation five times of the prevailing rate.

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The Deputy Commissioner, Dr Harish Vashisht, claimed that a consensus had been arrived at with the farmers and a proposal based on the revised collector rates had been submitted to the office of the CM, as such matters were decided by the High-Powered Purchase Committee headed by the CM.

The Rs 110-crore project was started about four years ago. While 10 pillars have been constructed by the UP Government on its side of the river, Haryana was to construct two pillars, for which eight to nine acres were to be acquired.

The share of Haryana and UP governments in the budget is Rs 36 crore and Rs 74 crore, respectively, for the 540-m bridge.

The only access between the two states in the district across the Yamuna is the Pontoon bridge that came up in 1991. It was built during the tenure of the then MLA, Ram Rattan, father of the present MLA.

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